Catch a falling star
by altricial
Summary: Lavender Brown has a pocketful of starlight for Neville Longbottom.
1. Default Chapter

**Title**: Catch a falling star (1/2)  
Author: Altricial  
E-mail: annabel@london.com  
Category: Diabetic Fluff.  
Rating: PG  
Couple: Lavender Brown/Neville Longbottom  
Feedback: *nods*  
Warning: HET. HET. HET. I apologise.  
Disclaimer: I own everything. Please sue. I'm bored. 

Author's note  
Another fic that wasn't supposed to happen I had writer's block so I typed randomly and this disgusting het fluff resulted. Then I realized I don't have any non-slash mailing list to post this to. Therefore I decided to subject my fellow Veelas to some het torture. Once again, I apologise. Especially to Krissy, for making Neville so darn adorable, and the rest at #malfoymanor. 

* * *

_ Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket  
Save it for a rainy day  
Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket  
And never let it fade away.  
_

Lavender Brown frowned at the spread of tarot cards in front of her. Something is amiss. And she hasn't the slightest idea what it is. Biting her lips tentatively, she glanced up towards the front of the dimly lit, sandalwood-scented room and raised her hand. "Professor Trelawney?" 

The frail enigmatic Divination teacher looked up from where she was sitting and smiled fondly at her favourite student. Potentially good Seers are so hard to come by these days and this Lavender girl appeared to have what it takes to uncover the mysteries in the signs of Nature. "Yes, Miss Brown?" Trelawney asked kindly. 

"Professor, I- uh, I need some help with this tarot interpretation. Would you take a look at it for me, please?" Lavender rubbed her temples lightly, still frowning at the baffling spread of card. 

"Certainly, my dear." The sagely-looking witch stood up from her desk and ambled towards Lavender, her long fairy-motif skirt swaying rhythmatically with her emaciated hips, coming to a halt at the perplexed student's table. "What seems to be puzzling you here, dear?" 

"Well, Professor Trelawney, I'm trying my hand at the Faery Oracle and I've got them in the Celtic cross formation," Lavender gestured towards the six cards, arranged in a T-shape, in front of her and continued, "so now I have The Friends card as my first which indicates that the situation at hand revolves around someone I know, but since it is facing away from me, I'm guessing he or she isn't that close a friend of mine, is that right, Professor?" 

"Yes, indeed." Trelawney moved nearer to take a closer look and nodded her head slowly, "Do go on, Miss Brown." 

Lavender paused for a while then pointed to the second card in the spread, "The Lady of the Harvest. She represents completion, grief and loss. Something or someone was taken away from my friend." She traced a finger across the third card and sighed, "The Faery Who Was Kissed By The Pixies card indicates love given and love received. I'm guessing the loss was of a person who meant a lot to him or her. Am I reading it right so far, Professor?" 

Trelawney beamed down at her star pupil and rested an assuring hand on her shoulder. "Yes, yes, you've learnt the subtle art of oracle reading well, Miss Brown. I'm duly impressed. Now, the fourth card is the Gloominous Doom, how might you interpret that, my dear child?" 

Lavender fixed her eyes on back at her cards with renewed confidence and stated, "Self-defeat, self-pity, self-destruction, abandonment and loneliness. That is the direct reflection of the current situation. Oh dear, Professor, I'm really worried now! Who is this friend they are referring to?" She looked up at her Divination teacher helplessly. 

Trelawney smiled elusively and sat down on an empty chair next to Lavender. "There, there, don't you get yourself all worked up for nothing, dear. Read the rest of the cards, things may not be as bad as our human brains want us to believe them to be." She patted Lavender comfortingly on her hand and continued, "But the cards, they know and they tell. They tell us what happened and what to do. Have faith in them and they will show you the ways." 

"Yes, Professor, I understand and I'm ready for the cards to impart me with their teachings." Lavender focused her concentration back on the oracle spread with a face of resolve and said, "The fifth card is The Singer of Connection, which reflects the forces taking shape now." She stopped, pondering for a moment over her Divination notes, then said, "Oh right, that means there is a spiritual connection being formed right this instant. Karma, balance and empathy...but a connection between who and who? Am I still on the right track, Professor?" She glanced at her teacher who has been silently watching with an appreciative smile. 

"Yes, dear, yes you are. Carry on with the last card, you are doing perfectly, Lavender." Trelawney noticed the doubt colouring the face of the blossoming teenage girl and added, "It will all come to light, believe me. I see all and know all. The last card holds your answer. Go on, my child." 

Seeming somewhat convinced, Lavender stared back at her cards again. She picked up the final card from the spread, scrutinised it hesitantly for a moment and stated matter-of-factly, "I know what card it is and what it means. It is the future card. Ilbe the Retriever, the office of unclaimed property, hopes and wishes." She placed the card back on the table, with more force than necessary, and turned slowly to face her teacher, "What I don't understand is; why does the card tilt in such a peculiar way no matter how I try to place it? Does it mean something?" 

"Yes, it does, dear. Yes, it does." Trelawney smiled a little smile and scratched a long, glossy, purple fingernail along the side of the sixth card. It glowed slightly, bathing the table surface with an eerie, yet calming, florescent blue light. Trelawney gave the card a hard spin, using her longest nail on her last finger to flick it across the desk, and she explained, "Ilbe the Retriever is by far the most magical card from the Faery Oracle. It may be the office of unclaimed dreams but it promises a chance of a dream come true by assigning keys to different hearts. By spinning the card, it will give us a hint by pointing in the direction of the soul who holds the key." 

The illuminating rotating card came to an abrupt rest as its faint glow died out, pointing straight at Lavender Brown. 

"Me?" Lavender gasped and stared wildly at her Professor in half delight and shock. 

"It appears so, Miss Brown." Trelawney smile deepened, a hint of pride dancing in her magnified clear emerald eyes behind the glittery glasses that were considerably huge for her skeletal facial structures. "It should not come as a surprise to you, my dear, as it does not to me. You have the most magnificent magenta aura I've witnessed in years. A clear sign of a nurturing heart with an immense capacity for love and hope." 

A faint blush coloured her creamy, pale cheeks as Lavender took a moment to consider the implications of the words. After a moment's pause, she asked, "But Professor, I still don't know who this person is.I mean, if I hold his or her key to the hidden hope, how can I help if I don't know who it belongs to? Is there a way I can find out? Through a scrying mirror perhaps?" 

"Close, but not quite," Trelawney nodded. "This is not my usual practice but I believe I can make an exception for my top pupil, can't I?" She gave Lavender an uncharacteristic wink and stood up carefully from her seat. "Follow me, dear." And she led the way towards the back of the classroom as curious eyes from the rest of the students followed them in interest, looking away (or falling back to sleep amidst their pillow of oracle cards) again briefly. 

Lavender peered across her teacher's shoulder as Trelawney reached into a coffin-size wooden crate decorated with a vast variety of runic scriptures and embedded gems and crystals of all shapes and sizes. Trelawney's thin, wrinkly hand tapped the inside of the crate with a fancy-looking violet wand three times and out floated a shimmering orb perched securely on a miniature fire-breathing sapphire dragon. 

Lavender clasped a hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp of astonishment before exclaiming, "A scrying ball! But Professor Trelawney, we haven't learnt how to use one yet!" 

"There, there, hush now, Lavender. We don't want the rest of the class clamouring me for such special treats now, do we? It is to my knowledge that you are quite ready for this higher level of Divination, however I cannot say the same for the rest of your classmates." Trelawney smiled fondly, and held the lustrous crystal ball in her palms, lightly stroking the bravura dragon, blissfully oblivious to the snorts coming from a certain red-haired freckled boy and his messy, raven-haired counterpart. 

Lavender shot a look of annoyance at her sniggering classmates and promptly returned her full attention back on the crystal orb and the tiny dragon that was now purring contentedly against Trelawney's coaxing fingers. She bit her lips hesitantly and asked quietly, "What do I have to do, Professor Trelawney?" 

"Focus your thoughts with the question in mind. Will yourself to concentrate on what you are trying to reveal and expel all other irrelevant details from your head." Trelawney waited for Lavender to prepare herself and once the girl's eyes were tightly shut and furrowed in meditation, she continued; "Now keep your eyes closed, reach out and hold on firmly to the crystal ball." 

The temperamental dragon gave a huff of indignance as the orb was lifted off its back and into the hands of a very nervous Lavender Brown. Trelawney patted the tiny beast on its scaly tummy soothingly and resumed giving instructions, "Alright there, Miss Brown? Good. Now I want you to repeat after me without losing track of your true intent. 'Three by three, in perfect love and perfect trust, let me see, let me see, let me see. This is my will, so mote it be.'" 

"Three by three, in perfect love and perfect trust. Let me see, let me see, let me see. This is my will, so mote it be." Lavender repeated, keeping her eyes firmly locked against all unworldly distractions. The crystal ball felt cold against her fingertips, and yet strangely warm nestled against her palms, radiating a bizarre tingle throughout her body, all her nerve-endings prickling against the stillness of the musky air. 

Trelawney gently took hold of Lavender's shoulder and led the both of them towards a ratty old couch in an undisturbed corner of the classroom. Sitting the tensed girl slowly down on the sofa, she settled next to her and said, "Open your eyes, my dear, and look straight into the crystal. Look with your heart, listen with your soul and all will be revealed in due time." 

Lavender pried her eyes open little by little, her long lashes fluttering uncertainly, filtering the sudden infusion of glittery light seeping through her eyelids. Finally, her eyes opened fully, welcoming the sight that beheld her. She had in her hands a breath-taking orb of gleaming rainbow, sparks of electric shivers waltzed around the crystal ball, basking her hands in its vibrant grandeur. 

The awe-struck girl blinked a few times in disbelief before recalling what she had to do. She had to find out whose key she had locking up dreams and hopes of a new beginning. Squinting her large brown eyes, she concentrated on the spirals of colours bouncing against the inner surface of the crystal globe, flicking enticingly in a meaningful tango of swirly auras. And then she saw it. 

She saw him. 

As the clouds of mystical hues parted faintly within the reflective curved barriers of the omniscient globe, Lavender narrowed her eyes to make out the identity of the vague, shadowy figure sitting solitarily next to a pretty little pond. The ballet of smoky colours hazed over the vision, much to Lavender's frustrations. She willed her mind to 'see' and the mist of scintillating shades dispersed gradually in compliance. 

The mysterious figure came into view at an agonisingly dawdling pace. A glimpse of sandy brown hair neatly parted to the side. A flash of familiar podgy red cheeks tainted with sticky moisture. A twinkling of glossy dark brown eyes, like the murky waters from the pond nearby. A glint of a minute pebble-grey slab of rocky tower rested upon grassy pastures. A flicker of luminosity lingered upon the tiny stone structure where shaky minuscule carvings spelt out "Trevor Longbottom. A true friend sorely missed. Rest in peace." 

Neville. 

And then it was gone. A disheartening 'pop' and the images washed away in a frenzy of mist and frolicking colours of a rainbow. A final tremor of acid cobalt lightning crawled hurriedly across the circumference of the orb and Lavender Brown found herself staring back at her own bewildered expression reflected disquietingly on polished black marble. She blinked and gaped and stared at her teacher, befuddled beyond words. 

"Professor!" She exclaimed breathlessly when she regained her power of speech, "Professor Trelawney, I saw! I saw-" 

"Relax, my child." Trelawney laughed softly, silencing the agitated girl in mid-sentence. "I know what you've seen and therefore there is no need to inform me of the visions you were granted." She took the scrying ball from Lavender's quaking hands, placed it back onto the squirming baby dragon and returned them into the jewel-encased crate as the scaly minuscule beast gave a satisfied grunt and fell straight asleep. 

"But. But Professor, why- Why me?" Her brow creased in confusion, twirling a finger around the ends of her auburn curls, deep in thought. 

Trelawney graced a knowing smile and said, "Ah, Miss Brown, there are some things that are written in the stars. It is not up to us to question the hands of fate and the workings of destiny. You have been allowed a peep into an episode of the past, my child. Now it is up to you to create your own beautiful ending." She gestured towards the front of the classroom and they made their way back to Lavender's desk. 

"But how? Professor, I don't know what to do! What can I do to help him?" Her face took on a pondering air as she slumped back into her chair. The sudden turn of events was making her head spin. 

"That, I cannot tell you. Do what you feel is right as the best things in life cannot be seen or touched but only felt by the heart. I may be a little short-sighted but do not think that I haven't noticed the amorous glances you have been gracing one of your classmates, Lavender." Trelawney chuckled softly and lifted a finger to hush the bashful protests. "Just remember to invite your poor, old professor to your wedding, won't you?" She winked at her horrified student, green depths twinkling with mirth. 

"Professor!" Lavender gasped in astonishment, a crimson flush spread up from under her collars, like spilt wine tainted on pale wan silk. But before she could make a feeble attempt at defending herself, Trelawney had already sauntered to the front of the room and with a clap of her hands, everyone looked up (or woke up) and class was dismissed. 

"What was that about?" Her best friend, Parvati Patil, nudged her shoulders and gestured questioningly towards their Divination teacher. 

"Huh? Oh, nothing really," Lavender shrugged as nonchalantly as she could while sneaking a peek at a certain chestnut-haired boy, who was dragging his feet out of the classroom with his head hung low. A sharp pang of empathy sounded within her. She looked back at Parvati and said, "Just some things I need to do." 

A broken heart to mend. A lost soul to complete. And a heaven-sent hope to return, for a happy ever after. 

  
_

For love may come and tap you on the shoulder  
Some starless night  
Just in case you feel you want to hold her  
You'll have a pocketful of starlight  


_


	2. Crash and burn

**Title**: Catch a falling star (1/2)  
Author: Altricial  
E-mail: annabel@london.com  
Category: Diabetic Fluff.  
Rating: PG  
Couple: Lavender Brown/Neville Longbottom  
Feedback: *nods*  
Warning: HET. HET. HET. I apologise.  
Disclaimer: I own everything. Please sue. I'm bored. 

Author's note  
The fic that wasn't supposed to happen wasn't supposed to have 2 fucking chapters. It's ok. I've come to a peaceful realisation that I talk too darn much. It's ok. Still, I apologise. And I've a sudden urge to write Lavender/Trelawney. I should probably apologise for that in advance as well. Especially to Krissy, for making Neville so darn adorable, and the rest at #malfoymanor. 

* * *

_ Because there has always been heartache and pain  
and when it's over you'll breathe again.  
You'll breathe again.  
_

"Lavender, where do you think you're going? It's past bedtime. Mcgonagall will throw a fit if she finds you wandering about at this time of the night," said Hermione Granger as she climbed eagerly into bed with a gigantic book of 'Redhead Wizards and How to Own One' for companion. 

"Nowhere," came the curt reply from Lavender. She rolled her eyes and strolled purposefully towards the dorm door, not bothering to point out the stark irony of the situation. If anyone held the record for having most house points deducted for midnight adventures, it would be none other than Hermione herself, with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley thrown in for decorative purposes. 

Anyway, she had more important business at hand. She had someone to hunt down. Fast. Taking one last glance at her reflection in the full-length talking-walking mirror and smoothing one stray strand of auburn hair down carefully on her cascading curls, she strode out of the dormitory, with a small box cradled in her arms, and into the common room, vaguely aware but not entirely sure why her stomach had chosen to perform some turbulent summersaults at this particular moment. 

And there he was. 

Just where she wanted him to be, curled up all alone by the roaring fireplace of the Gryffindor common room, casting forlorn shadows around the darkened room. The silence of the night sang a deafening hymn of shielded sorrows. Licks of stormy greys loomed predatorily upon the lingering red aura from the solitary boy. A trailing battle between hope and loss. 

It unnerved her terribly. For a fleeting moment, she wondered if she should just run back to her room and forget everything she was seeing and has seen. But no, she couldn't bring herself to walk away, to walk away from a broken boy. And this wasn't just any boy, was he? She took a deep breath and moved silently across the burgundy carpeted floor. Very gently, she reached out and tapped him on the shoulder with her free hand, "Neville?" 

He jumped and whirled around in surprise. He blinked. And blinked. Then finally a squeak, "Lavender?" 

"Yeah, uh- hi, I didn't mean to shock you like that," She blushed and sat herself down gingerly next to Neville. 

Another nervous squeak. "Oh! No, n-no, I was just, uh, I d-didn't expect anyone to be awake that's all." 

"Uhm...would you rather be alone? I can go if you want-" 

"No, no, uh." He cut her off mid-sentence and blinked a few more times at his intruder of the night, not entirely sure how to react. "I uh, you can, I mean, you can stay if you w-want to," he stuttered. 

"Okay then," she smiled shyly then looked down at the little purple box resting on her lap. She fiddled with the glittery pink ribbon for an immensely uncomfortable moment before awkwardly shoved the box towards Neville with a simple, "This is for you." 

The box gave an indignant yelp. 

Neville stared wide-eye at the box, which was now making peculiar scratchy noises, and looked at Lavender, his brow creased in severe confusion, "F-for me?" 

She nodded, looking down at her suddenly very fascinating fingernails. 

He scratched his head. He poked the fidgety box carefully with one chubby finger then took it in his clammy palms and started to tear at the obscenely girly wrapping paper. A brown lidded box came into view. 

He shoke it a little. 

The box squeaked angrily. 

He gulped. 

Very slowly, he lifted the cover of the box, peered in and was very promptly attacked by a fluff monster. 

He screamed. 

Something, something furry and round, had propelled out of the box and had instantly latched itself onto his nose. It took a while but he eventually calmed down long enough to cross his eyes and squint down at his fuzzy attacker. He found himself staring back at beady black eyes and a twitching whiskered pink snout. He wriggled his nose with experimental curiousity and felt tiny little claws digging urgently into his pores. 

Beady eyes, pink nostrils, whiskers, claws. 

There was a gerbil on his nose. 

He sincerely hoped it wouldn't choose this moment to defecate. 

Neville very carefully pulled the rude attacker off his face and placed the wriggling rodent on the square of his palm. It scampered around in circles for a while and then latched itself onto Neville's thumb, where it curled snugly into a brown and white spotted fur ball, gave a happy yawn and fell straight into a sweet slumber. 

Neville gaped at Lavender. 

Lavender giggled madly. 

"Uh, Lavender, what is this thing?" he asked, unsure. He stared at Lavender then back at the creature. "I m-mean, it is a gerbil," he answered his own question, "b-but why?" 

"His name is Squeaker," Lavender giggled some more, "I thought you might like him, reminds me of you." She blushed prettily. 

Neville scratched his head with his gerbil-free hand. "I l-like him, but- but why are you giving him to m-me?" 

"Oh," her voice dropped to a hush. "I know about Trevor, Neville. And I'm really sorry." She looked down at her hands, shuffling uneasily. 

He almost dropped the now snoring Squeaker in surprise, and his voice came out in an almost choked whisper. "H-how do you know about Trevor? I... haven't told anybody!" 

"I saw it," she continued studying her hand, "I saw it all in my tarot spread and the scrying ball, I just.I didn't know what to do. I thought maybe you'd like a new friend." 

Neville cracked a tiny smile, "I knew Professor Trelawney isn't as kooky as Ron thinks." 

"You did?" Her eyes flew up to meet his, shocked, "I mean, I know she isn't, but I thought Parvati and I were the only ones." 

"I do. I'm just not very- I am pathetic at Divination," he mumbled, "but I believe you, uh, I mean, her. I think she's n-not a kook." 

"Thanks, Neville, it means a lot." Lavender smiled bashfully, "And you are not that bad at it really. I can help you, I mean, if you want." She looked back down at her hands. 

Neville stared down at the little woolly fellow sound asleep against his thumb, then looked away. All he could see was Trevor. He missed his best friend. The only friend he had but Trevor is gone. Not lost this time. Gone. Forever. And nothing can replace the void in his heart. He blinked away the moisture clouding over his eyes, his voice quavering, "Lavender, I-I... I thank you a lot, but I don't.. don't think I'm ready for Squeaker yet. I-I'm sorry. But I do ap-appreciate it. A lot." 

"Oh," she said, barely able to conceal the disappointment, "it's okay. I can understand that." And she did. She understood how it was like to lose a dear pet. She was shattered when her baby bunny passed away last year. How it was like to be overwhelmed with sobs when everything reminded her of soft, white fur. "I'll keep Squeaker for you, Neville," she picked the tiny fuzz-ball up and placed it oh so gently back into the box. "But whenever you are ready, just know that he is here for you," she bit her lip for a second and added, "I'm here for you too, Nev." She decided she liked calling him that. 

Neville flushed crimson but managed a heart-felt smile. He nodded tentatively. "T-Thank you, Lavender. I...it means a lot to me, really." 

Her cheeks coloured. There appeared to be a blushing competition between the two bashful teens on this quiet, soulful night. Lavender played with the hem of her robes, feeling ridiculously edgy. She stole a glance towards the huge window. The winking stars peeped at her from behind the lush mahogany velvet curtains. After a beat, she stood up all of a sudden, startling the poor confused boy, and tugged at his sleeve nervously, "Come with me, Nev, I want to show you something." 

Neville blinked at her in surprise, "W-where are we going?" He quickly stood up to follow her, almost falling back to the ground as he tried to gain his balance from the fast movement. 

She tugged the fumbling boy all the way to the window bathed in shimmer of the moonlit night. She stared up into the sky for a moment, her head tilting in all directions, as if searching for a lost star in the midnight blue. Turned out that was exactly what she was looking for. Finally she gave an excited squeal and pointed up above, "See that, Neville? Over there, on the right, where five stars form a loop-sided pentagram and the three little stars at the end?" 

Neville stared thoughtfully up at the pentagram, squinting in curiousity, "Er... yeah, I see it... W-what am I looking for?" 

"That's the Pisces constellation, Nev, your constellation. The Sign of sensitivity and selflessness. It's beautiful, isn't it? It is the fourteenth largest constellation." Lavender smiled wistfully into the cloudless sky. 

Neville blinked, "Um, Lavender..." his face turned bright red at the words. "...w-why are you showing me this?" 

"Because I want to show the things about you that are written in the stars. Things you don't believe you are. Bravery. Kindness. Compassion." She sighed, enthralled by the wonders held within one twinkling night sky. "And also because I know you like nature, Nev." 

Neville opened his mouth, then closed it. He was starting to feel like a retarded fish. Finally he squeaked out a stunned, "You...do?" 

"Yeah, I do." She chuckled lightly at the bewildered boy and returned her gaze towards the night. "I've seen the way you observe your surroundings. Most people think you are just spacing out, but they don't see the way your ears perk up at the chirp of a sparrow or the way your eyes dance with the falling leaves." 

Neville gulped and made various vague shocked noises in his throat. He couldn't trust himself to speak. 

"I'm like you too, you know? Just that I don't observe nature, I watch people." 

"Uh, people?" 

"Yes, people." Lavender nodded, still engrossed with the starry sights. "I watch the different ways people get on with their lives. I watch the popular people get caught up in their sweep of life-altering events. Like Harry and gang. They spin around in their world, blind to everyone else's. I watch the quiet characters become quieter. People like you and me. We blend into the background. I don't know about you, but I like it there. It's safe." 

Neville nodded slightly, "Y-yeah, I agree, Lav," the nickname rolled off his tongue uncertainly. And he quickly turned his gaze to the ground before she could comment. 

Lavender flushed, her cheeks stained an endearing cerise glow. She cleared her throat and blabbered, "I play my role as the ditzy superficial girl and I watch people believe that's who I am. I watch people never bothering to look underneath. I watch them not watching me. It sounds depressing but it really isn't. I watch and I learn. I learn who to trust and who not to." She stole a sideway glance at her jittery companion of the night and added, "Like I trust you." 

Neville blanched, not knowing how to respond to that. Nobody has ever trusted him before. Not even his own Gran. The countless howlers and his impressive collection of rembralls. In fact, he had a feeling Trevor wouldn' t be hopping in line to trust him either, since he was lost half the time. Neville stared at Lavender. "Y-you trust...me?" he finally squeaked. 

She nodded shyly then looked away, fidgeting with the curtain frills. Suddenly, she gasped, pointing back up into the sky, breaking the awkward silence, "Look over there, just next to Pisces, that's the Pegasus star! Pegasus is the thundering horse of Zeus, protector of the stars. Trevor is your Pegasus, Nev, he's looking out for you from way up high." She turned and touched her hand softly on Neville's droopy shoulder. "You have your very own guardian angel now." 

His heart floated with hope, faith, dreams and everything else he thought he had lost together with his beloved pet toad. He rubbed roughly at his eyes, refusing to let her see his shadow of tears, "I... don't know what to say, Lav, but," he paused uncertainly, voice quivering. "Thank you, f-for everything. For being there, as a friend, and for Squeaker." 

Lavender shrugged, looking away. She was touched, beyond words, but she knew Neville was at the brink of over-spilling woe, so she looked away, as her heart sang ardent tunes of promises. She leaned against the window, tracing patterns of sparkling balls of night lights on the glass pane, she asked, "Do you know the myth behind the Pisces stars, Nev?" 

He shook his head slowly and prodded ungainly against the window, nearer to Lavender. He had no idea why he had this insane urge to be closer to her. He just did. And so they stood, side by side, facing a boundless sky, like two missing pieces from a puzzle that once again glistened a vision of beauty. Of completion. 

"When Venus and Cupido had to fly from Typhon in Egypt they were changed into two fishes in the sky. There they are, as one way up high," Lavender said to him, drawing diagrams on the glass. Shoulder brushing against shoulder, fuzzy wuzzy sparks spiralled their way up and out, binding the two in a bashful glow of puppy love. 

Neville turned to look at her, his face flushing, and mumbled quietly. She gave him a quizzical look, so he repeated himself, voice a fraction louder. "...that must be nice... two fishes in the sky....they don't have to be lonely anymore," it came out in a shaky breath, but he didn't stammer. It was too important not to. "....they have...each other." 

Lavender gazed deeply into his eyes, trembling with unsaid emotions. She slipped her hand gently, but firmly, into Neville's, and whispered, "Everyone is lonely, Nev, but it takes a strong person to admit it." Lacing her fingers through his in an entwine palm kiss, she leaned into him and rested her weary head on his welcoming shoulder. "Everybody is alone but it gets easier when you have somebody." 

Neville looked into the eyes of his brown-eyed angel, choked on unshed sentiments. He has always been lonely. He had gotten used to it through the years. Just being alone. Lonely. But in this one moment of contact, with his heart in her hands, he realised he was not. 

A shooting star glided across the smiling night sky, and he knew, he'll never have to be lonely again. 

  
_

For love may come and tap you on the shoulder  
Some starless night  
Just in case you feel you want to hold her  
You'll have a pocketful of starlight  


_


End file.
